Bokeh

Here are a few pictures I took using Akasha's camera. This was a fun assignment, I look forward to the next one!

bokeh assignment

Well this is my first time posting on this blog and I'll admit I'm a little nervous to submit my photos! I am Kalista's younger sister, and although I'm super excited to be apart of the group, I just barely got a SLR camera and am still learning how to use it! I was a little unsure of what to submit for this assignment because I read so much about bokeh and read how there is both good and bad bokeh, I just couldn't really tell the difference myself! Hopefully that will be one of the things I'll be able to learn from this blog :) The photo I ended up choosing for this assignment is one I took of a young robin I've been watching since it was only an egg in the tree right outside my apartment complex. This was actually the last time I saw the robin because as soon as I took this photo it flew away for the first time and never came back to it's nest!

Anyway, I can't wait to work on more assignments and to learn more about photography from all of you! Thanks for letting me join the group!

-Akasha

Bindi - Bokeh

Blurry clouds...

Mia's colourful cupcakes and her bottles of sprinkles...

I have taken a few pictures over the past week and included the cupcake one at the bottom taken about a month ago. I don't seem to be able to get the unfocussed bit to go into actual shapes/circles and don't seem to go below F3.7 before it tells me it is too dark. Simon has promised to go through the Nikon D40 for Dummies book with me and see if he can help! Then again, I just like the effect of the blurry background without it being too extreme.

More bokeh!

I hope you all dont mind me posting more photos!! I wanted to experiment with different focal lengths & smaller apertures. This first photo is taken at f5.6.

And here are some portraits I took today with bokehlicious backgrounds :)

Bokeh by Johanna

Bokeh by Emma

I wanted to make sure I knew what Bokeh was before I took photos for this assignment. There is a lot of confusing information out there! Some say Bokeh is ALL of the blur that happens beyond the point of focus. Others say Bokeh is the shiny little circles of light created in a blurred area outside the point of focus. But then I read that the 'bright ring' effect is what leads to 'bad bokeh'!! Some think its the smooth & silky background blur. There are debates about what is "good" bokeh & "bad" bokeh. Who knew it could be so confusing.

This next quote I found is what I tend to agree with, but I guess its all VERY subjective!

"Bokeh describes the rendition of out-of-focus points of light. It describes the appearance or "feel" of out-of-focus backgrounds and foregrounds. Differing amounts of spherical aberration alter how lenses render out-of-focus points of light, and thus their bokeh. The word "bokeh" comes from the Japanese word "boke" (pronounced bo-keh) which literally means fuzziness or dizziness."

New Topic - BOKEH

Yay. My turn to pick a new topic.

And it is... BOKEH.

I like bokeh. Lots. Just not very good at creating it when I mean to. Turns out well when I don't intend to do it!

There is are some good pages on bokeh at the Pioneer Woman (here and here). If you search for the term on Google lots of interesting information turns up as well.

Can't wait to see everyones' pictures with a little bokeh in them....

Bindi xo